Big in Japan?

Gov. Ernie Fletcher and Economic Development Secretary Gene Stong are hightailing it to Japan this weekend on the KY taxpayers' dime. Wonder how much this trip will cost?

Aftermath

It should be no surprise that Democrats will take control of Congress next year. Scandals, outlandish earmarks and the Iraq war have been a thorn in the side of the GOP. However, the main question is: Will things be any different?

A couple of days ago President Bush gave a lackluster speech which seemed to indicate that he may cave in to the Democrats' demands. Alarmingly, Bush even conceded that he would work together with Democrats to come up with a compromise to the minimum wage issue. So far, Bush has only vetoed one bill during his tenure at the White House. It's time to ink up the pen, Mr. President.

In Louisville, underdog John Yarmuth upset incumbent Rep. Anne Northup. Yarmuth wisely hammered Northup on the Iraq war issue. No big deal. Northup was just a RINO anyway.

Moving on to Kentucky state politics, the Democrats also made a considerable gain in the legislature. Thankfully, voters finally sent left-winger Steve Nunn home.

This year's elections should be a wakeup call to the Republican party. The Republican Revolution is over.

Throw the bum out

Rep. Hal Rogers tries to defend his pork in today's Lexington Herald-Leader:

The Herald-Leader's article about my activity in support of the Eastern Kentucky Rural Information Highway System, commonly known as 511, was highly derogatory.

Because the program's true nature and success were conveniently ignored, it is necessary to set the record straight and offer an accurate picture of the program and its manager, the Southern and Eastern Kentucky Tourism Development Association.

The association, formed in 1987, serves 47 counties, covering parts of five of Kentucky's six congressional districts. The phenomenally successful organization provides tremendous resources for expanding and marketing tourism, encouraging economic development and boosting the overall quality of life in southern and Eastern Kentucky.

The association ensures that the 20,000 tourism-related jobs in my region not only exist but also thrive and grow through strategic planning, creative marketing and regional collaboration. Case in point is the 511 tourism information system.

Rogers singles out the Herald-Leader, but does not even mention State Auditor Crit Luallen's report that questioned Hal's awarding of contracts.

Government does not drive the majority of tourism. Private business does. From the first Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant to the Shaker Village, these attraction thrive without government intervention. I question how many out of state tourists have even heard of the 511 system and I wouldn't be surprised if a majority of Kentuckians do not use the system for traffic related information. 511 has been around for a number of years. Who knows what these numbers Hal cites really mean?

The system is working and paying huge dividends to local economies. To date, 51,000 calls have been received, and 13 million users have logged on to the Web site. In recent surveys, more than 80 percent of users indicated that they were spending additional days in Kentucky because of information received through the system.

As a result, tourism receipts are way up in my region -- from $794 million to more than $1 billion in just a few short years. Now other states are looking at installing their own 511 tourism system.

How dare Hal takes credit for an increase in tourism business. What about the ingenuity of businesspeople in his district? It's doubtful that 511 is directly correlated with the increase in tourism business in E. Ky. Too bad Hal doesn't have a viable opponent in the election tomorrow. It's time to throw this bum out.

Kentucky may end fiscal year with $279 million surplus

Here's a bit of good news:

Kentucky is on pace to finish this fiscal year with an extra $278.9 million, and Gov. Ernie Fletcher already has ideas on how to spend it.

Those ideas, Fletcher said Thursday at a news conference in the Capitol, include beefing up the state’s rainy-day fund for emergencies, providing more money for state retirement systems, revisiting some of the building projects he vetoed in this year’s legislative session, shoring up need-based tuition assistance to college students, and looking at more tax relief for Kentuckians.

Ernie: Please lower taxes and store the money away in a rainy-day fund. Forget about your other ideas because they're bad.

Poverty of ideas

The Bluegrass Institute's Chris Derry has a rather cold and callous solution to easing Kentucky's poverty problem:

Actually, I suggested that perhaps Frankfort (a synonym for Kentucky's General Assembly) could help opportunistic individuals – those who want the chance to improve their lives – by offering them one-way bus tickets to Lexington or Louisville.

For an organization that offers "best practices for a better Kentucky" this is a rather nonsensical and perplexing idea.

There are plenty of opportunities available for most people in Kentucky. While, at times, finances may be tight for many Kentuckians, many people can work their way up as long as they hold onto a full-time job.

Here's what a Heritage Foundation report has to say about poverty:

But the living conditions of the average poor person should not be taken to mean that all poor Americans live without hardship. There is a wide range of living conditions among the poor. Roughly a third of poor households do face material hardships such as overcrowding, intermittent food shortages, or difficulty obtaining medical care. However, even these households would be judged to have high living standards in comparison to most other people in the world.

Perhaps the best news is that the United States can readily reduce its remaining poverty, especially among children. The main causes of child poverty in the United States are low levels of parental work and high numbers of single-parent families. By increasing work and marriage, our nation can virtually eliminate remaining child poverty.

Perhaps the best solution to poverty legislators in Kentucky could come up with is the introduction of competition into the Commonwealth's public schools. School choice would force lagging public schools to improve. The better education Kentucky's children receive, the less likely they will live in poverty when they become an adult.

While there is probably no end-all solution to poverty, I know that herding a bunch of people like cattle and shipping them off somewhere else definitely won't be a public policy we will ever see.

Billy Harper's campaign doesn't stand a chance

Paducah millionaire Billy Harper recently announced that he was throwing his hat in ring for the next year's gubernatorial race. Harper has already spent a load of money on a couple of vauge mush-mouthed TV ads that have aired across Kentucky.

Harper seems to be running on one issue: Education. However, it's hard to figure out how exactly he plans to improve schools in Kentucky. Just look at some of the ideas listed on his website:

Funding for full-day kindergarten.
Advocate for higher certification requirements for teachers.
Reward teacher leaders.
Require every high school to show its graduates have necessary skills and knowledge for the workplace and for success on the job.
Hold teachers, principals, school councils, students and superintendents personally accountable for student achievement.

Very unimpressive. Harper should donate his greenbacks to Kentucky's school kids. He could help education in Kentucky if he pushed for tuition tax credits. Individuals and corporations could donate funds to individual students so they can choose a school that best fits their needs. Harper's millions could be used for something good rather than being wasted on a poorly run campaign.

RINOs work to oust South Carolina Governor

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford is one of the most impressive gubernators in the nation. Stanford is a staunch supporter of school choice and firm fiscal conservative. However, some so-called Republicans think Stanford is too conservative and wish to replace him with his Democratic challenger:

“South Carolina can’t afford four more years of Mark Sanford’s inept leadership,” said Columbia attorney and former U.S. ambassador Weston Adams, chairman of Republicans for Moore. “The Sanford administration has been an abysmal failure and is irretrievably broke.

”

Just take a look at these planks from SC Democrat candidate Tommy Moore's "on the issues" page. He doesn't exactly stand for the all important Republican principles of limited government:

Establish a statewide quality preschool program so every child has the best start

Adamantly oppose any attempt to take money out of public schools and give it to our wealthiest families to help them pay for private schools

Re-establish our Commerce Department as a formidable economic development tool

Provide nearly 150,000 more adults with health insurance by helping small businesses afford health insurance for their employees

Why do people like Mr. Adams even bother going by the name Republican anymore? Too bad Kentucky doesn't have a governor like South Carolina's.